


Kit-Napped

by milesabovepeter



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: F/F, F/M, Single Parent AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-27
Updated: 2016-08-10
Packaged: 2018-07-18 11:40:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 5,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7313824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/milesabovepeter/pseuds/milesabovepeter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“i’m so sorry that my child pointed out how your shirt- actually nevermind i agree, that shirt is horrendous” au</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Listen have you ever watched a Hallmark movie? that's what this is just gay and in France

Chloé slowly looked up from her magazine, glaring at the current object of her annoyance from behind her shades. She had hoped not to run into anyone here for her dentist appointment. As was her luck to have to deal with some brat.

"Pardon me?" She asked.

The child, no older than six years old, wore black demin shorts and orange t-shirt with a some sort of brown monkey on it. Kicking on their feet were white sandals, as they pointed a stubby finger at her t-shirt.

"Your shirt looks like snot!" They repeated, their long light brown hair bouncing as they giggled. Chloé looked down at her shirt. Pistachio green with a gracious V cut, it had been a gift from a fashion event. It was worth a forturne in thread count alone! How dare this little maggot--

Their mother tapped the small hand and said something sternly--was that Italian?

"I'm sorry my daughter pointed out how your shirt-" The woman finally focused on Chloé and wrinkled her nose, "Actually, nevermind I agree, that shirt is horrendous.”

Chloé gasped as she clenched onto her magazine! How rude! This shirt was designer!

"This shirt is designer! It cost more than most people's houses!"

"Then it's an awful waste of money," The mother replied without a moment of hesitant, licking a thumb and brushing against her daughter's cheek. A little marker stain vanished from the child's skin.

"It was a gift." Chloé argued as if that held any weight.

"Somehow that's even worse." Clearly it didn't.

Before Chloé could get another word in with this--this intrepid woman, her name was called. With a huff she closed her magazine and rose, following the assistant. Hopefully, when her appointment was finished, the mother-daughter pair would be gone and she wouldn't have to deal with them ever again.

After a somewhat painful experience--her teeth, like the rest of her, were perfect--she was right. The duo was gone, most likely with the children's dentist. With a righteous "hmph" as she paid the front desk and signed up for her next session, she was glad that experience was over.

"Snot lady!" came a cry a week later as Chloé shopped for groceries from the market. Chloé, basket in one arm, hadn't even acknowledged the voice until she felt a tug at her skirt. Peering down through her glasses. Familiar light brown hair and bright green eyes stared up at her as recognition clicked. It was the same child from the dentist. And yet her mother was anywhere in sight.

"My name is Chloé, you brat," She seethed quietly through a tight smile as she crouched down to eye level. She cut her eye at the market vendor who's eyebrow was raised. "Now where is your mother?"

The girl pointed behind her and Chloé followed the direction but didn't find the mother. The girl looked back and seemed to realize that she had gotten separated from her mom. That is if the sudden scrunching of her little face and tears in her eyes were to go by.

"Oh, no you are not crying on my watch. Running away from your mother, honestly," With a dragged out sigh she went for her purse and pulled out the correct amount of money. Without raising from her squat, after placing the change on the counter, she immediately held out her arms. The child recognized the gesture and soon a small body resting against Chloé's hip as though she had practiced this beforehand.

"You're much taller the than mama," The child noted between sniffles as she straightened out to her full height.

"All the better to find her with," Chloé quipped searching the crowd again, "What is she wearing, um,--what even is your name."

"Kit!" Of course it was, Chloé thought with a mental eye roll, "And same thing as me!" A bright orange sundress and adorable black shoes. How cute the idea that they wore the same outfit was not lost on Chloé.

With Kit in tow, Chloé wandered the market place for a good half an hour, explaining to the child was different foods were and what they tasted like when asked. Chloé was even able to get a few free samples, mentally taking note of what she liked.

"Your daughter is very cute," commented one of the vendors, a portly woman, when Chloé adjusted the child on her hip.

"Oh she's---" Chloé started to say, her brain immediately realizing what she displayed.

"Kitrina!" came a sudden cry that caused Chloé to jump. Kit's--no, Kitrina's--mother came rocketing towards them with tears in her eyes. The exchange from her hip to the mother's arms was almost seamless, "Oh my baby, my darling little girl I was so worried. Don't ever run away from e again." Tears were streaming down her face as she fell to her knees.

"I'm sorry, mama," Kitrina said sadly as her head was pressed into her mother's chest, "But snot lady saved me! She even gave me sweets!"

"Snot lady?" The woman mumbled confused before looking up and finally realizing Chloé was there, "Snot lady."

"My name," Chloé started with a tired breath, "Is Chloé."  
  
"I'm apologize, that was rude of me. I'm Lila and this is Kitrina. Is there anything I can do to repay you?"

Chloé actually gave it a moment of thought before shaking her head.

"Just keep a better eye on your daughter, please. And you," Chloé pulled a honeycomb patterned handkerchief before bending down and wiping at Kit's tearfully snot filled nose, " _Snot girl_ need to not leave your mother's side." With a giggle Kit nodded and made a promise to never ever run away from her mom again.

With her good deed for the year done, she paid for some dark chocolate and gifted to Kit, before heading home to her apartment with her groceries. A billboard just outside her father's hotel caught her eyes and it was only when she arrived home that she recognized the mother. The famous singer/actress Lila Rossi--

"Mme. Chloé!" came a familiar squeal as she entered the building, a hug wrapping against her legs.

\--- who was staying with her daughter.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> backstory? yeah a little. but mostly a not-lunch date

"I can't---thank you Sean this look delicious--I can't believe I didn't recognize you." Chloé commented, twirling the fork as it hovered over the plate food. The woman (the actress, the singer, the star) across from her gave a laugh as she began to cut her daughter's food for her.

"I can't imagine that Chloé Bourgeois doesn't know what a small change in hairstyle and make up helps to hide in the crowd." Well Lila certainly wasn't lying. She had been able to avoid paparazzi and 'fans' simply by a shift of her hair or simply a change of outfit. "I recognized you right away when we ran you into the first time. Wonderful dentist, glad your father recommended her to me."

"What were you doing at the dentist office?" Stupid question, Chloé knew with a glance at Kitrina. The girl, who had sported all her teeth when they first met, was missing her two front teeth. Lila finished cutting the chicken nuggets into tinier pieces and flashed Chloé a snowy smile.

"Just a standard check up for both of us. I wanted to go before Kit started school and I started shooting. Make sure she's not sneaking too many sweats when I'm not looking." Lila ran a hand through her daughter's hair and ruffled it a bit. Lila had scored the lead role Cassandra Jones, the titular character from the beloved novel series about a librarian turned adventurer. The news sites said that Lila had signed on for 3 movies of the movies and projected that she'd be the biggest star under 30 if they did well.

"Well I hope you don't fall into one of those on set romances with your lead. Those can get fairly messy from what I've seen." Chloé watched as Lila's eyes flashed from her daughter fondly to something...sharper as she locked on Chloé. Another smile, this time something playful.

"Well, if you'd read the books, you'd know she has two love interests. One is a man while the other is a woman and I certainly don't want to rule out all the options." The wink that was shot in Chloé's direction caught her off guard, a piece of her salad going down the wrong pipe. Chloé coughed, hacking ungracefully to clear it. Once she was fine and it had passed, Chloé found Lila's hand atop of hers, an apologetic expression on her face. Chloé waved her off.

"I'm fine. You just surprised me. I didn't know that you were, well--"

"That I also have an interest in women?" Lila finished as Chloé nodded, "Well it's one of the few things I try to keep private. Besides, got to have one or two juice secrets as a star."   
  
"Mama," Kit suddenly chimed in with her face a little messy from the food, "All done!"

And true to the child's word, all the food on the plate had vanished.

"That's my good little fox," Lila cooed, as she pulled the handkerchief from earlier to wipe the small face.

"Pierre," Chloé called out to the older gentleman who had practically raised her. Streaks of grey were finally settling in and every time she saw them, Chloé flinched. Looking back she hadn't been easiest child to manage (hell even a few years ago she was still considered wild). Still that sparkle hadn't left his eyes and he still served her with a smile. "Can you take the young miss Cappello to her room? I assume it's her nap time?"

Lila gave a nod to clarification, turning to Kitrina and saying something Chloé didn't understand. The child hopped down from the seat and stood on her tip toes to kiss her mother on the cheek before dashing around the table and doing the same to Chloé. A hand went to her cheek as the giggling little girl swung her arm with Pierre leading her away.   
  
"I'm surprised to knew it was almost nap time for her." Lila commented, taking a sip of water and watching her.

"Yes, well, it is fairly late in the afternoon so I just guessed really." Chloé replied, averting her gaze.

"Hmm." Lila mused, "I'm just surprised I guess? Never would have guessed that the daughter of Paris's former mayor and premiere hotelier would know how to handle children so naturally. What's the story there, if you do't mind me asking." Chloé recognized the hunger of a story and that curious glint in her eyes. It was something she had seen growing up around a certain journalist before they had become big time.

"My brother--"

"Brother? Aren't you an only child?"

Chloé glared at being interrupted and Lila put up a hand in defense. 'Sorry continue,' she said non-verbally.

"My brother, at least that's how I view him, has a daughter around the same age. Sometimes I babysit and watch her. This usually the time she goes for her nap. No big mystery."

"Interesting," Lila hummed, clearly not entirely buying that as the entire story. The brightness of her eyes didn't disappear even as her expression softened. "Really, I want to thank you much for look out for Kit. She's my entire world."

  
It was then Chloé realized that Lila had not moved her hand at all.

"It wasn't anything special," Chloé assured her, wondering whether she should remove her hand. Before she could make a motion, however, Lila moved away.

"Still there has to be something I can do?" Lila scrunched up her nose and this time it was Chloé's turn to laugh.

"There really isn't anything I want or need but thank you for the thought. Honestly--"

"Would you like to come to the set tomorrow? I do also need someone to watch her for a bit and she seems taken with you."

Well, that _was_ something she had always wanted to do. How could she say no? Besides that kid wasn't so bad.

"Sure, it's a date." Lila rose an eyebrow and Chloé sputtered. "I didn't mean it like that."

Lila gave a giggle before returning her hand to pat Chloé's.

"It's a date."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This is were the magic happens

When she was younger, Chloé had dreamed about being an actress. The glitz and the glamour of it all had captivated her. Being able to be whoever you wanted for a short period of time and to be praised for it. Chloé may have been older now and had a better understand of the job and the world that came with, but the allure was still there as she stepped onto the set. The string of the black lanyard classes against her white dress sundress, GUEST visible enough that anyone who passed her knew her place. With so many people rushing around to get set up within the hour, Chloé felt a little lost among them.

Then out of the corner of her eye, she saw girl around her age, maybe a few years younger, carrying a tray that had coffee and what looked like a juice box. Chloé quickly followed after but kept her distance. It didn't take long to reach for them to come upon a two chairs, one reading Lila Rossi on the back in looped letters while the other was probably the tiniest orange seat Chloé had ever seen.

"Your coffee and a juicebox, madame," Chloé could hear the young woman say, having halted a good ten feet away.

"Thank you, Camile," Lila says, Chloé watching her quickly first set up Kitrina's juicebox and handing it to her daughter, before taking hold of her beverage, "Also relax a little, please. I know it's your first day on the job but you don't need to be so nervous."

Chloé from where she stands can see Camile's whole body seem to release a breath and her face flush a bit. Then Chloé noticed Kitrina perk up and turn around in the seat to look directly at her. While it wasn't the first time to see a child light up at the sight of her, it definitely was still a new feeling that stirred her heart. Not sure what to do or say, Chloé waves and a small smile at the child.

"Mama, look!" Kitrina bubbles, handing her juice back to her mother before hopping out of her chair. Like a bullet, the child run towards her legs and wraps her tiny arms around them. "What are you doing here?"

"She's here, my pup, to watch over you while Mama works," Lila calls over with a smile in her lips before bringing her drink to her mouth. Kitrina takes one of Chloé's hands and gently tugs her over towards her mother. Lila rises as they get closer, dressed causal in jeans and a flannel shirt.

"Thank you so much for doing this, honestly. I just need someone to keep an eye on her and I don't want to give Camile here more work than she can handle."

"Mme. Rossi that's--" Her assistant starts but is immediately dismissed with a wave of Lila's hand.

"Besides, you looked pretty excited to at the idea of watching me work! First time on a movie set?"

Chloé nods and looks around, much more people than she had anticipated. "It is certainly more crowded than I imagined, that's for sure."

"All the more easier for this one," Lila squats down and scoops up her daughter for a spin, "To scamper off and get into trouble when no one is looking."

Lila is soon called up onto the scene, a giant piece of a make shift library. Lila places Kitrina down onto the ground, who walks to Chloé and takes her hand. Lila takes inhales before let it go and pulling her hair into Cassanda's signature ponytail. She then turns her back and walks confidentially on the set. It isn't until the cameras are rolling, till Chloé has taken Lila's chair with Kitrina in her lap, that she recognizes the scenario from the books. Two fully suited people enter through the fake library doors and Chloé remembers that this is where Cassandra first fights for her life before finding the Book of Silence her grandmother left her.

Watching Lila work really is an experience: the shift from the woman who was flirting with her just last night to a meek but sassy librarian. Lila's full immersed herself into the role and it's only just begun. Chloé can feel Kit's head back against her chest, watching her mother intently and much more silently than Chloé expected from the child. In a flurry, the action truly starts, and Chloé can't help but gasp to see the suited man and woman shift into attack mode. Any expectations of Lila using a stunt double leaps out of Chloé's mind as Lila jumps over the counter before her and behind the two actors.

Playing out like her imagination did when reading, Lila dodges and weaves behind bookshelves as she races around the limited space. Like her character, Lila manages to take out one of the stooges, the man, before hearing a click go off behind her. As Lila turns, the sound of a prop gun goes off. Chloé instinctively covers Kitrina's eyes as it happens, looking away herself as Lila falls backwards even though she knows it's fake.

"And cut!" calls out the director, a woman with silver hair. "Let's do it two more times and then call lunch before introducing Kimberley,"

It was just after Cassandra got shot that Kimberley, Cassandra's first love interest, would take care of the last goon before leading Cassandra to the hidden room where the Book of Silence rested. Chloé's eyes found a short haired blonde woman (she hadn't committed the actress's named to memory yet). She was...pretty but not so much as to take away from Lila's gorgeous looks. From how she snapped at her assistant, a timid young woman around the same age as Camile, Chloé didn't like it.

_'Pot meet kettle,'_ Ran through Chloé's mind. She had a history of blowing up at people and being a diva in just about any situation. It was more reigned in now but she cringed whenever she saw someone else exhibit the same behavior. Kit was motioning at Camile at that moment for her juice, which Chloé handed to the young girl. Lila ran through the scene another two times (the second time was the best from were Chloé sat) and it was finally time for lunch.

Chloé noticed that Lila's brown skin seemed to shine from the sweat due to activity and the lights. Camile handed her a towel, which she gratefully took.

"After all that, I guess I don't need to workout later," Lila said with a laugh as she rolled up her sleeves. Chloé focused solely on her face and mostly certainly did NOT look at Lila's really toned arms. "You ready to go grab something to eat, pup?"

Lila hopped down from Chloé's lap and cheered, ready to go and explore more of Paris.

"Is Clover coming with us?" Kitrina asked her mother, looking back at Chloé.

_'Clover?'_ the heiress mouthed and Lila shot her an apologetic smile with a shrug.

"I hope so, kiddo. I wanted her to show us some place yummy to visit nearby. If that's okay with you?"

Chloé quickly ran through places she knew in the area that weren't too far from the studio, tilting her head a little to think.

"I have the perfect place possibly?" She replied with a nodded, pulling out her phone to check the distance. "We can be there and back in an hour."

Lila was smiling at her when she looked up and Chloé felt the tips of her ears warm. "It's a date."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chloé's past is explored a bit.

Chloé strolled on Lila's right towards the street, her normally long stride shortened as she kept pace with the mother and daughter. A small smile found it's way onto her face as Kitrina babbled endlessly at how cool her mother had looked fighting the bad guys. Lila in turn beamed with pride at every word that escaped her Kitrina's mouth. Where Chloé had led Lila and Kitrina was an out of the way restaurant.

A swell of nostalgia flashed into Chloé's heart upon sight, waves of memories just beyond that door. The familiar jingle of a bell met her ears as she pulled the door open. Lila and Kitrina stepped in ahead of her as Chloé followed behind.

"Welcome to--well I'll be, Chloé Bourgeois is that you?" A soft voice but masculine voice, called out to her. The tall, older Black man with grey sprinkled in his hair pulled her into a hug.

Chloé hugged back and smiled. "Hello, Uncle Charles, it has been a while."

"Renée, you won't believe who stepped through our door!" He called to the back.

"Who is it, Charlie?" Came a much louder and abrasive voice from the kitchen, and suddenly a small Korean woman appeared, wiping her hands on a towel, "Do my eyes deceive me or is that our favorite celebrity?"

Charles stepped away to let Renée wrap her arms around Chloé's waist before she started patting at the Chloé.

"You haven't been eating right, have you, child. You're somehow skinner than your mother at her age. Sit, sit! I'll cook up a few of your favorites."

Before Chloé could utter a word, she and the Rossis' were pushed into a booth of the joint. Chloé slid into the right side towards the window as Lila sat parallel to her with Kitrina sitting open to the aisle. Renée handed Lila a menu and pointed first to the kids menu before disappearing to get complimentary waters.

"You seem pretty familiar here," Lila commented without looking up from the menu as Kitrina pointed to what she would like.

"Hmm." Chloé said, looking out of the window as she rested her chin against her hand, propping her elbow against the table.

"They looked at you like how my mother looks at Kitrina."

Chloé was about to reply when Charles returned just at that comment.

"That's because she is the closet thing to a granddaughter Renée and I will have. Not everything works so well, I admit." He chimed in as he placed down two glasses and a plastic kids' cup, "Her mother brought Chloé here often when she was just a baby. Hasn't been by in a few year though. Y'know, always thought you'd end up with that redhead girl you brought in a lot when you were 15--"

"You thought Sabrina was my girlfriend?" Chloé gasped before choking down water in the wrong pipe.

"You never saw the way she looked at you? Oh, dearie," Charles said quietly.

"What was she like as a child?" Lila interrupted the small stretch of quiet that came over the booth.

"This was a messy eater, always picking things with her hands. Nowhere near as dainty as she is now," Charles reminisced with a smile as he wrote down Lila and Kitrina's orders, "Also very loud and rambunctious. Always wanting to be noticed is something that hasn't changed much.

Chloé rubbed her neck, embarrassed at things she couldn't remember. Lila on the other hand was ecstatic. Her peridots flashed as they locked with Chloé's blues and a sly smile crept onto her face as if she locked away some precious info.

"We have a photo wall near the restroom if think you can find her." Charles commented as he took the menus from them before he went to to put in the order and attend to other customers who had just walked in.

"No," Chloé said sternly, placing a hand on Lila's, stopping from doing what she was clearly thinking.

"Well you've made me even more curious," Lila replied with a laugh that was meet with a mock groan. Chloé then realized that what she had done and retracted her hand with Lila watching her, "I don't mind contact, y'know."

Chloé didn't respond but instead took a sip of her water. Lila giggled before starting to fuss over Kitrina, who was drawing in the coloring book Lila had brought with her. Chloé let the silence between them settle in, comfortable to just watch the two interact. A pang of something--longing? memory?--fluttered in her heart as she did. It wasn't usually, something that always happened whenever she visited this place where her mother took her. Her and--

"Sooo," Lila drawled and broke Chloé's introspection. The woman was good talking out of the side of her mouth, attention clearly focusing on her kid, "Who's Sabrina?"

Chloé rolled her eyes. "Someone I'd rather not talk about with you."

"Oh, it was like that? So M. Charles was right about her being your girlfriend?" Lila teased, finally looking up to gaze at Chloé. Chloé in turn could see the wheels turning in Lila's head, trying to decipher what she had meant and just who this person was to her. Trying to be unraveled, Chloé summarized, was a very uncomfortable feeling.

"She was a girl who fancied me, at most. It didn't end well and that's all I'd like to say on the matter." Chloé inspected her nails, her voice clipped and annoyed. The sparkle in Lila's eyes faded before she looked away in understanding. Guilt was starting to rise in Chloé and mingle with her annoyance. But, she argued to herself, some topics should stay personal and honestly Chloé didn't know Lila all too well. And in the end that's what Chloé wanted--to get her know her. So did Lila if the blonde was reading the other woman correctly.

"I'm sorry," Chloé eventually apologized, "It's just a very touchy subject and--"

"You don't know me that well, I understand. I shouldn't have pried."

At that moment, Charles brought their food. Renée wasn't kidding about making a few of Chloé's favorites: honey-drizzled grilled chicken with angel hair pasta, a mint-chocolate milkshade, and a small bowl of banana pudding. Chloé's stomach growled loudly at the sight and covered her mouth in embarrassment as both Rossis busted out in laughter.

The meal went by quick--they were on a bit of a time crunch after all--but Chloé was pleased to see that they two of them enjoyed their meal. Lila, just as Chloé was going to start on her milkshake, put her water's straw and began to sip. Her daughter laughed as Chloé sputtered at her mother's actions.

"I'll pay for the meal," Lila announced once they had finished, "But I need to use the restroom? Can you take Kit back with you? I'll catch up really quick honestly."

Chloé was eyes narrowed and was about to speak when Kitrina jumped up and slid into her booth to hug her arm.

"I get to walk with Clover!" The little girl giggled and Chloé relaxed so that way the small one wouldn't sense their tension. As she rose and took hold of Kitrina's hand, Renée came from the kitchen and handed the girl an ice cream cone.

Lila watched as they exited the restaurant and started to walk back, paying for the meal and cash with a hefty tip ("We'll be back often, the food was great!"), She rose and headed toward the restroom which, true to what had been said, had photos of a large amount of customers over the years. Lila's eyes easily found a woman who looked much like Chloé. That wasn't what caught her off guard.

It was the young boy by her side, a toothy and gaped smile.


	5. Chapter 5

Though it was early in the morning, Chloé lay awake, watching the fan above her bed spin circles. Dressed in her favorite yellow nightgown, sleep had not come to take her that night. Her mind would not let her rest as it replayed the previous day's events. Surely Lila had figured out her secret after putting two and two together from the restaurant. And yet....nothing had changed?

Lila had exited and the two women had taken each of the young girl's hands and swung Kit all they way back to the studio. Kit had chosen to sit in Chloé's lap the whole time while her mother worked on another scene. And when that was over, with a sleeping Kit in her arms, Chloé carried her in her arms to her car and drove them all home.

"I'm surprised you have a car seat prepared." Lila had said with little wonder in her voice. Chloé cut her eye to glance at the passenger, who looked back at her daughter with a fond smile.

"Yes, well, I figured I'd be easier to pick you and Kit up myself then have you pay for a driver. And Emma's hasn't gotten any use in a while." The first part was true but the second part was a lie. See Emma's car seat was custom made black and green with kitties while Kit's was orange and white with little foxes. Not that Lila needed to know that.

"Hmm," Lila hummed but said nothing more. They had pulled up and Lila collected her daughter from the car before kissing Chloé on the cheek and flashing her a million watt smile. Stunned, Chloé froze and just watched the Rossis enter the building.

Now, several hours later, Chloé's hand lingered where Lila's lips had touch as she tried to figure out what that meant. Was it a simple gratitude kiss or something more? They had only a few interactions so it couldn't have more meaning. Sure, Kitrina was clearly taken with her and her mother definitely had some interest in Chloé but her life wasn't some sort of romance movie.

Chloé hadn't even wanted children. Never did she want to impart the same sort of relationship she held with her mother on a child. And that wasn't even going into how annoying children could be, with the exception of her adorable niece. She was good at being an aunt and spoiling Emma, but that was it. At least, that's what she had believed before. Now, somehow, Kit wormed her way into her heart and started to give Chloé second thoughts.

Chloé supposed she shouldn't have been to surprised. She had been doomed the moment the girl had sought her out and she had carried Kitrina on her hip. Paternal instincts she'd thought were surely buried.

A knock at her door pulled her from her own internal thoughts and Chloé welcomed the distraction in her sleepless night. She rose and tucked her feet into her fuzzy slippers. There was another knock on the door, this one more insistent than the last.

"Yeah, yeah hold on. It's not like it's 5 am or anything." Chloé muttered as she got close to the door. "Who is it?" she asked perfunctorily before creaking the door open. Green eyes that she was becoming increasingly familiar with as the days went bye met her gaze. "Lila?"

Lila, dressed in an orange tank top and black pajama bottoms, looked as if she hadn't gotten a wink of rest either. Lila gave a tiny smile that morphed into a wild yawn (which caused Chloé to yawn as well) which she covered quickly.

"So are you going to invite me in or would you prefer I get caught coming to your room before dawn? Tabloids tend talk about this kind of thing you know." Lila asked a moment later before Chloé rolled her eyes and stepped aside. Chloé led her to her foyer and they took a seat on her couch. Chloé looked out the window, trying to figure out why Lila had come to her so early in the morning, waiting for her to speak.

"Looks like I'm not the only one who had a sleepless night?" There was the touch of a hand atop Chloé's which drew her attention. "Listen, I was wondering if I could talk to you---"

Chloé's mind stalled at those words. Her heart was suddenly caught into her throat and her chest was tight. Was she breathing? Chloé didn't think so as the only thing rushing through her lungs was panic. This was it, what she had really been dreading every since they left the restaurant. Lila had figured out her family secret and now wanted nothing to do with her. All the flirting and their outing together and her own thoughts about how she felt about Lila. It was all for nothing now. The picture she had so carefully thought out that had kept her awake tonight---a date with just the two of them; a romantic kiss goodnight that lead to more; a spring wedding a year or two later with Kitrina as both the flower girl and ring bearer; Chloé and Lila raising the girl together to a rowdy but adorable teenager--was suddenly shattered.

"---about making you Kit's emergency contact for school?"

What?

"What?"

Lila blinked. "So that's a no?"

"N-no! I mean! I'm sorry I'm out of it. You know lack of sleep can make it really hard to focus? It's like I forgot to turn on my ears haha. Can you repeat what you said?" God she was acting like Marinette back when they were in school. Overthinking and rambling over a crush. How embarrassing. Lila tilted her head slightly confused but repeated the proposal. "Are you sure okay with trusting me?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Lila, and the sound of trust in her voice that matched the sincerity her eyes made Chloé's heart fall back into her chest and swell. "I can't ask my assistant to do it because I prefer to have her by side during shoots. Kitrina trusts and knows you, hell, she wouldn't stop talking about you during her bath. Besides I kind of like you too."

Chloé gave her a knowing look, glancing at the know intertwined hands. "Kind of?"

"Just a bit, yes." Lila replied with a giggle before leaning forward kissing Chloé's cheek (in the same spot as earlier no less). Afterwards she rose and stretched, looking behind her to see the sun rising from Chloé's patio. "Thank you, Chloé."

"For what?" Chloé asked as her eyes ignored the sunrise she had seen a million times and only focused on the woman before her. What could Lila possible be thanking her for when she had a secret?

Lila said nothing but only smiled at her in reply, clearly keeping a secret of her own in that moment. The tension in Chloé's shoulders faded and she realized that maybe keeping one or two things to themselves wasn't so bad.


End file.
